Morrisons raises £331m in sale-and-leaseback deal in bid to reduce debt
Morrisons has signed a sale-and-leaseback deal with an undisclosed business which the supermarket retailer has said will generate net proceeds of approximately £331m.
Under the terms of the deal, 76 properties will be transferred to the purchaser and then leased back to Morrisons, which is working to reduce a hefty debt pile.
Sky News has reported that the buyer is real estate investor Song Capital.
Morrisons – which was acquired by US-based firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) in 2022 for £7bn – most recently reported a debt burden of around £4bn.
However, this was down from a peak debt of £6.2bn, after Morrisons completed a £2.5bn sale of its petrol forecourt business to Motor Fuel Group – also owned by CD&R – earlier this year.
Morrisons said the acquisition is set to complete on or around 2 October, and that the use of proceeds from the transaction is under consideration.
CBRE is reportedly understood to have advised Morrisons on the deal, Sky News has reported.